Homemade Pizza, Lickety Split

So, yesterday I needed to get lunch pulled together REALLY fast. I knew my husband was rushing home from work to take me to the doctor, so I had to hustle.

I also knew I hadn’t done any kind of “real” grocery shopping for, oh, let’s just say a l-o-n-g time.

It can be so frustrating to realize that you don’t have many ingredients. Or much time. Or much energy. (As you know, I busted up my knee and I’m not exactly operating at 100%.) These are the times when I believe most of us get really tempted to grab fast food or take-out of some kind. It’s easy, for me at least, to convince myself that I just don’t have the time or resources to make something fresh and homemade.

So I timed myself.

That pizza up there? Completely assembled– though, as yet, unbaked– took me three minutes. And that’s a homemade crust.

Here are a few tips/tricks/secrets you should know before I tell you exactly how I did it:

My favorite crust recipe has a rise time involved. It’s not long– only about 20-30 minutes– but it’s enough to make it not a “lickety split” recipe. I needed to be willing to be flexible.

I much prefer to shred my own cheese. I like the texture better and I think I use less, making it more economical. That said, pre-shredded saves time in both prep and dish-washing.

Mixers are great, but, honestly, I’m just as fast with a big bowl and spoon– arguably faster, since I don’t keep my mixer out all the time.

I almost always have pre-made pizza sauce, marinara, or spaghetti sauce rolling around in the fridge or freezer. Any of them will work in a pinch.

This is a smallish pizza (about 12″ diameter.) It was meant for a quick lunch alongside some fruit. This is not going to feed a big crowd or provide a huge supper.

So here goes!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup very warm water

1 teaspoon yeast

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon olive oil (I let a little extra run in.)

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 cup white flour

1/4 cup sauce

a handful or two of shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1. Add water, yeast, and sugar to large bowl.

2. Meanwhile, thaw sauce, if needed. In my case, it was frozen, so I tossed it in the microwave for a couple minutes.

3. Add salt, oil, and flour to the bowl. Stir with a spoon until sort of crumbly and semi-combined. At this point, abandon the spoon and use your hands to knead it together for a bit– I don’t even think it took me a minute.

4. Press and stretch the dough on a pizza pan or cookie sheet until you have a thin crust. I don’t even grease or cornmeal-dust the pan when I’m in a hurry. The little bit of oil in the dough seems to be enough to keep it from sticking too much.

5. Top with sauce and cheese.

Voila.

Even if you’re not a speedy pizza-maker, it really shouldn’t take more than 5 minutes.

When you’re ready, bake it at 400 degrees for 8 – 10 minutes.

Is it the most perfect pizza I’ve ever made? Nah. But no one complained. The crust wasn’t as light as it usually is, but the wheat gave it a hearty, chewy texture that satisfied everyone in the fam. The sauce was reliably tasty and the fact that is was “just plain cheese” didn’t slow anyone down.

I need to remember, when I’m tempted to whine “not enough time”, that there is, indeed, almost always time.

4 comments to Homemade Pizza, Lickety Split

We have been trying to eat in more… We were only eating out once a week but it is still more money than eating in costs. I am a from scratch gal. Thanks for the reminder how easy things can be.

My hint for you on cheese would be to shred extra next time and freeze it. We do not but shredded cheese because it is not only cheese. The anti caking agent they put in my kids have allergy issues with so no biggie I shred lots of cheese and freeze in a bunch of bags for future use. Hope it helps you save time in the future.